Prerequisites

Introductory courses in financial accounting and microeconomics. Students who have taken programs such as Business Foundations will be well prepared for this program. Familiarity with Microsoft Excel or other spreadsheet software is recommended.

During this intermediate business program students will continue their development of the skills and insight needed to conduct and understand the relationship between business and society and how business practices influence outcomes. Factors that are key to business success will be explored from a number of different perspectives and stakeholder views. The program includes fundamental work in managerial accounting, finance, macroeconomics, and law and government. Students will study managerial accounting concepts in the broad context of making business management decisions, including how managers and other decision makers rely on financial information to make decisions that benefit their organizations. Topics include operational and capital budgeting, investment, and performance evaluation.

Through seminar texts, independent research, movies, speakers, field trips, group projects, workshops, and student presentations, students will examine business and finance from a variety of viewpoints. Seminar texts will include books such as Ferguson's The Ascent of Money , Scalet's Markets,Ethics, and Business Ethics , and Porter’s Trust in Numbers , in addition to other fundamental business texts.

Anticipated credit equivalencies for the program include finance and managerial accounting, which will build upon previous work in financial accounting. In addition, macroeconomics and business law will provide a foundation for further work in business and social sciences. Students will collaborate to work on independent research projects focused on improving their analytic and communication skills. In small groups they will be required to analyze and critique a compelling business problem or issue centered on how to ethically operate successful businesses. The projects will include both a term paper and a multimedia presentation to the rest of the class.

Program Details

Fields of Study

Preparatory For

business, economics, law and/or the social sciences, or seeking employment in the private sector, government or nonprofit organizations. Upon successful completion of the program, students will be better equipped to understand how to operate a successful business, work with financial data in conducting business and public policy, and be better prepared for the quantitative requirements of businesses and government.